Google broke my Pixel during inspection, now says it was already dead. 1+ month limbo 😞

My pixel 9 screen had flickering lines so I sent it to Google repair Japan for inspection on November 22th.

They rejected the repair due to liquid damage. OK, my Pixel 9 had rainwater exposure from normal daily use
but not to the extent that it could have got internal liquid damage afaik.

The real problem is when it came back, the screen was cracked, which absolutely did NOT happen before I sent it.

December 15th, Google finally admitted in writing that they physically broke the screen during analysis. They allowed a free repair so I sent the device again to the repair center.

January 9th, now they claim the internal hardware is dead due to liquid damage, so they’ll only replace the screen for free — no guarantee the phone will even boot. It’s been nearly a month of “waiting for the higher team.”
At one point they even auto-cancelled the repair saying “no issue found”

What really bothers me: If they damaged the phone while it was in their custody…how can they be so sure they didn’t damage anything else?

Would you accept the free screen repair and move on, or push harder?

Update 1:
January 13th

Google now says screen-only repair is “impossible” unless I pay for water-damage repair first

After weeks of escalation, Google admitted in writing that they broke my screen during inspection and initially offered a free screen replacement.
Their latest response says:
They cannot do partial repairs. They will not replace the screen alone and I must first agree to a paid water-damage repair, only after that would they proceed with the remaining repairs
In other words:
Even though Google admits they damaged my screen while the phone was in their custody, they refuse to fix it unless I first pay for unrelated liquid-damage repairs — with no cost cap and no guarantee the phone will work.

This feels like policy gymnastics:
They admit fault → but won’t correct it unless I pay

“Free repair” exists in theory → but is blocked in practice

Support buttons are misleading (“proceed with repair” = agree to paid work)

I’ve now declined the repair and asked for the device to be returned as-is.

I’m also filing a formal inquiry with Japan’s Consumer Affairs Center so there’s a record.

If you’re sending a Pixel in for inspection:
document everything and be prepared for circular policy logic.